FCC probes Google Voice rejection, AT&T denies involvement

Apple and AT&T are facing more repercussions over the rejection of a native …

Apple and AT&T opened up a can of worms when Apple not only rejected Google's native Google Voice iPhone app, but summarily purged the App Store of any application that worked with Google Voice. The FCC has been giving the exclusive deals between handset makers and mobile carriers a lot of scrutiny lately, and now the FCC is looking into Google Voice-gate. The FCC has informed Apple and AT&T that it is trying to determine if the exclusivity between Apple and AT&T is having adverse effects on developers and consumers.

A group of Senators asked the FCC to examine handset exclusivity agreements that have become more prevalent—and have come into the spotlight with Apple's iPhone. FCC chairman Julius Genachowski promised to look into the issue, even before his appointment to the FCC became official. The investigation has been ongoing recently, prompting hearings before the Senate Commerce and Science Committee, prompting Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) to say that there are "too many places in this country where wireless call quality is low and service is unreliable—places where wireless broadband is only a pipe dream."

The recent expunging of Google Voice apps from the iPhone App Store prompted the FCC to find out just how much influence AT&T had on the decision to remove those apps. AT&T is denying it had any influence over Apple in regard to Google Voice, or other Google Voice compatible apps. "AT&T does not manage or approve applications for the App Store," AT&T spokesperson Brad Mays told Ars.

But AT&T's history with iPhone apps leaves questions as to whether the telecom influenced the Google Voice fiasco. AT&T has admitted that it moved to have functionality of the SlingPlayer app for the iPhone limited to WiFi connections only, despite the fact that there are versions on other smartphones available on AT&T's network that carry no such restriction. It should also be noted that Google Voice apps also exist for other smartphones available from AT&T.

The FCC is also asking Apple about AT&T's role in the decision, but what it really wants to understand is how Apple goes about accepting or rejecting applications. "Is there a list of prohibited applications or of categories of applications that is provided to potential vendors/developers," asks a letter sent to Apple. "If so, is this posted on the iTunes website or otherwise disclosed to consumers? What are the major reasons for rejecting an application?" Beyond some vague notions of what's not allowed, given in the developer agreement, Apple maintains—to the endless consternation of iPhone developers—no such official list, though there is an effort underway to document the various reasons Apple has given for some of its spuriousapprejections.

The FCC has its own questions for Google as well: it's asking about iPhone apps that Google has had approved and rejected, like Google Latitude. The FCC is also curious about what discussions might have taken place between Google and either Apple or AT&T regarding its apps (we know Google works with Apple on its apps), how users can access features of Google Voice in lieu of a native app (via Safari, so it makes little sense to reject a native app), and how things are different on its Android platform (basically, completely different).

Ars caught up with FCC chairman Julius Genachowski on Sunday at a National Broadband Plan promotional event in San Francisco, and asked if he thought that the FCC has the statutory authority to tell Apple to allow Google Voice on the iPhone. "At this point we're trying to understand the situation," Genachowski told Ars. "What we read about in the last week or so is relevant to some proceedings at the FCC. The agency is the country's expert agency on communications. And it needs to be proactive to understand what's going on in the marketplace that's relevant to its proceedings."

The logically inconsistent way apps are rejected is in some cases leaving consumers without access to apps that are widely available on other platforms. Even having a seat (at least until recently) on Apple's board wasn't enough to get Google Voice approved. And AT&T's exclusivity has had its own issues, recently highlighted by the lack of support for iPhone OS 3.0's tethering and MMS capabilities. Already some developers and even some users have sworn off the iPhone, and now the FCC is breathing down both Apple's and AT&T's necks. The rejection of Google Voice may be the straw that broke the camel's back when it comes to issues with the iPhone, particularly here in the US.